Commerical Banking Summer Intern Review

I have really enjoyed my placement. I think the conversations have been insightful, educational and inspiring. There have been a wide variety of people speaking to us as well as a chance for us to ask questions every single day. The support we received from the early careers team was amazing and really demonstrated the Natwest culture. The culture is inclusive, friendly and fun with a flat hierarchy which was nice to see evidenced in all of the talks we had.

I felt very valued by the whole of Natwest as any talk we had we were able to ask questions, no matter how senior the speaker was. Additionally, no one was ever too busy to respond to your email or LinkedIn message and answer your question. Additionally, we were told repeatedly by different people how Natwest is lucky to have us which was amazing as I feel very lucky to be there not the other way around.

Every intern was given a buddy. Mine was really helpful and informative. We had weekly calls to catch up on how I was and if I had any questions. She also gave me a great insight into her role and different aspects of Natwest, leaving me with a well rounded view. For the workload we had I felt completely supported and know my buddy could answer any question I had. I also know that if the programme wasn't virtual we would have got a manager and from what I have seen in the culture of Natwest, I am sure they would have been supportive too.

We had a 1-3 hour session every morning for the month and the rest of the time could be free time or you could use it to your own benefit. I would have said I would have been bored however I reached out to other interns on LinkedIn and emailed questions I had to my Buddy so they could reach out to the relevant peoples email address for me. I Overall, I was probably done by 2pm every day with all things Natwest. It was good in the sense that we weren't staring at our screens all day as this could have been extremely tiring and demotivating.

There wasnt a lot of responsibility due to it being a virtual internship.However, the team still managed to get us involved and run challenges we could get involved with and feel like part of the Natwest Family. By speaking to graduates who did the summer placement when it was not virtual I had heard that they had a project they worked on the whole 10 weeks and they were heavily involved in. Additionally their graduate jobs have high responsibility, so I believe if I am accepted onto the Graduate programme I will be given more responsibility then.

Inclusive, fun and educational!

Every meeting started on time with ZOOM links prepared in advance. The meetings always ended on time as well. The portal was easy to navigate and I have had no problem with finding any resources or meetings. The only time it has lacked organisation was at an understandable time in the thick of Covid before we started and they were still organising the course, I felt a bit in the dark as to what was coming up and if I needed to prepare anything etc. We got information about the sessions under a week before starting.

We had a whole week dedicated to personal development where the company put on sessions that we voted to have and decided would be most beneficial. In this sense, they very much invested in us. Additionally, the amount of information they are providing us with around the bank and its culture, and amount of time people are giving up to speak to us shows how much they are investing in us. Especially in terms of time.

Their graduate scheme is available after the summer placement and if successful, it is a great chance to learn more about the field you worked in. They are especially helpful in letting us know what the graduate scheme is like and what we need to do to get on it. The graduate scheme is extremely appealing and now after working on the summer placement, it is definitely my number 1 graduate scheme I am aiming for.

There were no social events put on for the interns to get to know each other in the evenings such as drinks or a quiz etc. Because of this some of the interns put on 2 sessions which were great. It would have been difficult for the Early careers to do this as there were people from various time zones and fitting things in the evening would have been a challenge. Despite this, if we were to have gone in person on the placement, there is an abundance of social opportunities, one of these being staying in Scotland for a week to get to know the interns at the head office. If successful, I am very much looking forward to this same experience on the graduate programme.

I lived and worked at home due to Covid-19

I lived and worked at home due to Covid-19

There was the 2.6 challenge and do good feel good challenge that interns could get involved in which allowed for some interaction outside of work. There were no social events put on for the interns to get to know each other in the evenings such as drinks or a quiz etc. Because of this some of the interns put on 2 sessions which were great. It would have been difficult for the Early careers to do this as there were people from various time zones and fitting things in the evening would have been a challenge. Despite this, if we were to have gone in person on the placement, there is an abundance of social opportunities, one of these being staying in Scotland for a week to get to know the interns at the head office. If successful, I am very much looking forward to this same experience on the graduate programme.